review: mother-daughter book camp by heather vogel frederick

I’M GOING TO CRY. It’s over. Really and truly this time, the girls are headed off to college and I’m a mess!

For those of you who don’t know, this series has been a favorite of mine for over four years now (I want to say four and a half; somewhere in that time frame. I hate that I don’t know exactly when I picked them up!) and it’s definitely a childhood favorite of mine. Each book begins a new year in the mother/daughter book club girls’ lives – from sixth grade to the summer before setting off for college. I feel like I’ve grown up with them! I relate to every girl on a different level and in a different way, and they’ve become some of my best friends.

(I even making many friends through Heather’s blog to these books – by commenting and getting the pleasure to interview her a year ago, many new blog readers have also become my closest friends!)

As my 11-year-old self said three years ago when the “last” book was written (awesome enough – it was published ON my birthday – September 11, 2012) in a review I had written: “Yes, I’ll probably get bored with my addiction to Nancy Drew mysteries pretty soon, and start reading the books all over again, but like the last sentence in the last book – Megan says, ‘There’s no place like home.’ – Especially when home is where the heart is. And my heart is with the mother-daughter book club.” As cheesy as that *may* sound, it’s so true and I’m all sappy because I feel like my real life best friends are all grown up now! I’m just so happy Heather Vogel Frederick decided to put in this last installment to give us a better idea – and one last peek – into the Mother/Daughter Book Club world, and where the girls are going from there.

This last one was a tad different than the rest of the series. The gang is signed up to be camp counselors at Camp Lovejoy, in cozy, lovable Pumpkin Falls – Heather’s other setting that ALSO makes you fall in love in her book Absolutely Truly. (On that note, I love how she merges her worlds together! Several characters from Absolutely Truly even made an appearance!) I loved the setting; Camp Lovejoy and the little girls Emma, Jess, Megan, Cassidy and Becca watch out for are cheeky and charming! Buuuut I did miss Concord and the crazy mothers and all. The book also didn’t take place in a span of a year as the others do; instead it’s a mere seven weeks. That said: this was the perfect setting and opportunity to bring the MDBC series to a close. In one final farewell, even the girls get emotional. I liked it a lot because the ending gave me a lot more closure than the (originally planned!) ending in Wish You Were Eyre.

The antics the girls find themselves in at camp are just as funny and interesting as the rest of the books! As I said before, the little girls in the cabins the crew is in charge of are so adorable! I loved the fact that the book club gets their girls together for a mini book club, because it was sweet that now THEY’RE leading the group. It made me wonder if perhaps they’ll start a book club of their own when they have daughters. (Hey Heather, make a spin off series would you??) (How AWESOME would that be?! My daughter would be reading that, for sure.)

And the girls! Same personalities, same friendly girls we’ve known through all 7 books. We meet Mirror Megan again, and Cassidy’s final score at the end of every chapter. They’re all still very much the same, yet they’ve grown so much in a subtle but clear way. (After all, you can’t expect them to be the same from 12-18 years old.) It makes the books very realistic and Heather does such a good job at that, while also making the books relatable and fun for readers of all ages. I know I’d have loved this as much as I do now several years ago and I doubt I’ll like this book any less four years from now when I’m the girls’ age in the book.’

The ending was as perfect as it can get. It was final, and I was SO happy to see the girls with a future I could be happy with – it wasn’t quite so unknown as in Wish You Were Eyre, yet also left just enough up to my imagination. Camp Lovejoy even inspired one of the girls into a career I can definitely see her in. It was such a sweet and satisfying ending; I know all of you will love it as much as I did and I can’t for you to read it as well!

five stars. ★★★★★

Emily

11 thoughts on “review: mother-daughter book camp by heather vogel frederick”

  1. This sounds like a sweet book series! Believe it or not I’ve…never heard of them. 😉

    Great review, Emily!

    1. It’s so wonderful, Faith! If you’re looking for some laid-back middle grade books, I couldn’t recommend them enough. They’re full of bittersweet growing pains and friendships. 🙂

  2. OMG, I love this review, I love this book, and I am so sad to see the series end.
    I loved the idea that Becca got from being a counselor. The setting was my favorite thing every, and same with the little girls there too. I just loved every bit of that book – from the setting to teh characters to their midnight memories, and it was so satisfying.
    Also, I’d love to read that spin-off series if she makes one (infact, let’s petition that), and if not, I can see me making my future daughter read this series.
    I’m so happy I read these books because I got to meet you and others through her blog.
    *I changed my blog name too!

    1. Thanks Trisha! Me too. *moment of silence for our beloved MDBC*
      Me too! Ack, it was all so emotional. Everything was delightfully sweet and cozy and it just felt like home. I’m even tempted to re-read it now, three months after reading it, so I can fully enjoy it in the summertime. 🙂
      Can we?? Seriously; this needs to happen.
      Same! I’m so grateful to the books and Heather. I think it could be qualified as the first fandom I was ever truly apart of; and I’ve met you, Brooke, Izel, and Olivia because of Heather’s blog! Crazy how books can bring people together!
      I love the new name of your blog! Looking forward to all of your upcoming posts!

  3. I. LOVED. THIS. BOOK.

    And I know. It’s over!!! (At least we have the Absolutely Truly series to look forward too. 😉 )

    I agree with you on how you can see the growth of each character- in my opinion, Cassidy grows the most. Or Jess. Wait! Becca! From Queen Bee to BFF. (Obviously I can’t make up my mind.)

    Great post, Emily! 🙂 Just wondering, is the published copy out yet or did you get an ARC? I won one off of HVF’s website, so I haven’t been paying attention to if the “real” one has come out. Thanks!

    1. ME TOO. Can you believe it’s over? But I seriously cannot wait for the next Absolutely Truly book. I’m in love with that world and the town is just so lovable and cozy. The entire book makes me want to curl up in a bundle of blankets next to a fire and get lost. Haha, agreed! All of them are so grown-up and mature and AHHH my babies. They grew up too fast.

      You lucky duck! The published edition is out; it was published on May 3, but I actually read an E-ARC in February. I really want to get a boxed set of the series once it’s available so I’m waiting for that to happen.

  4. Hmm. I’ve never heard of these, but it sounds like a nice series! I’m so glad that you liked them, and that the final book was a good one! It’s so disappointing when they’re not. :/

    1. You should give them a try if you want a fun contemporary MG! Oh I know. I hate when the final book doesn’t give you that “oomf” you were waiting for. Luckily this one did! 🙂

  5. I really can’t wait to read this now! Also what do you do if you’ve been emailing an author and she asks you for your address so she can send you a copy of her book?

    1. It’s amazing; I can’t wait to see what you think of it, Lu!

      That’s a tough one. My dad has a PO Box, so often times I use that address. If not, I trust certain authors with my address because I know that I know that it’s them. For example, I’ve emailed Heather Vogel Frederick so many times that I can verify her email and trust she won’t give my address to anyone else. But I know that some people don’t like the idea of giving out their address to just anyone, so it’s up to them. :-/

  6. I have it in my bookshelf waiting to be read…but I feel like I need to reread the whole series first (for the 5th or 6th time LOL). It is SO sad it’s over, but you know what, I’m so glad she decided to write a final book, even if it was the last one. I felt like “Wish you were eyre” was too soon to end it! In 2013 Ms. Frederick held a video conference my sister and I attended, and we were allowed to ask questions at the end and we were both like “Will you be writing another book?? you have to!!” and she said “possibly, there’s an idea in the works!” and now that it’s out officially I am so happy.
    Heather Vogel Frederick is so wonderful, and she is the reason (as I’ve said before) that I’ve met so many amazing bookish people! It’s how I ended up on your blog, as you know, and being able to communicate with fans of the book and the author herself is so incredible, and it shows you how special Heather is!! I can’t wait to get my hands on it (I didn’t try to read too much of the review to avoid spoilers, but for the most part it looks so good!) Thank you so much for this review Emily!
    God bless,
    Grace

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